| abrogate |
to abolish, repeal, or nullify by authority. |
| antebellum |
in or of the period prior to a war, especially the American Civil War. |
| augury |
the art or practice or an instance of predicting the future or obtaining hidden knowledge by interpreting omens. |
| blandishment |
(often plural) flattering or coaxing remarks or stratagems intended to persuade. |
| corollary |
a readily drawn conclusion; deduction or inference. |
| cynosure |
a thing or person that is the center of attention and admiration. |
| determinism |
the belief or teaching that every effect, including human thoughts and actions, is completely and predictably brought about by preceding causes and that, therefore, free will does not exist. |
| disallow |
to refuse to allow or admit; reject. |
| knurled |
having small ridges. |
| lorgnette |
eyeglasses, such as opera glasses, that have a short handle by which one holds them in position. |
| obviate |
to prevent or eliminate in advance; render unnecessary or irrelevant. |
| parvenu |
a person who has suddenly acquired wealth or status, without acquiring the tastes, manners, customs, or the like of his or her new station. |
| reprisal |
injury inflicted in retaliation for injury received, as in war; revenge. |
| solipsism |
the self-centered habit of interpreting and judging all things exclusively according to one's own concepts of meaning and value. |
| voluble |
characterized by a steady flow of words; fluent; talkative. |